Preparation of graphitic carbon nitride (g-C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>) for novel dielectric and photocatalytic dye removal applications
Aayush Gupta, Sachin Jaidka, Pandey Rajagopalan, Hitesh Kumar Mehtani, Varun Singhal, O. P. Pandey
Abstract
Abstract Recent developments in 2D nanomaterials have greatly expanded their use in engineering applications. Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) shows a combination of electrical conductivity, sensing and luminescence abilities, biocompatibility, and chemical stability. The present study showcases the effectiveness of g-C 3 N 4 as a photocatalyst for removing various organic molecules from water (such as methylene blue, 4-nitrophenol, and pharmaceutical drugs) and its potential use in dielectric applications when combined with an organic polymer (polyvinylidene fluoride; PVDF). XRD patterns confirmed the formation of g-C 3 N 4 (which is complimented by the UV-Visible and FTIR results) and PVDF-g-C 3 N 4 composite film. SEM-EDS verified the chemical homogeneity of the as-prepared g-C 3 N 4 powder. Maximum photocatalytic degradation was observed for methylene blue dye (96.48%) with a half-life of 24.18 min, whereas the least degradation was detected for hydroxychloroquine (53.10%) with a half-life of 90.12 min after 120 min of UV-visible exposure. 10 wt% C 3 N 4 reinforced PVDF thick films exhibited stable dielectric properties at low temperature (below 60°C) as compared to PVDF alone. At 1 kHz, the dielectric permittivity and tangent loss of the PVDF-g-C 3 N 4 composites come out to be ∼6 and ∼0.05, respectively (at room temperature). The AC conductivity and activation energy of the synthesized composite was also studied.